Neighborhood Residents Celebrate Mural Installation Thursday
Hartford Teens and Artist Designed and Painted Mural of Area

Released: September 27, 2005

Who:Hartford Mayor Eddie A. Perez
Orlando Ocasio and Britney Simmons, two of the 12 teenage muralists (others will attend, as will some of the younger students mentored by the teens) Chet Kempczynski, professional artist and lifelong Hartford resident Tom Phillips, CEO and President, Capital Workforce Partners Bernadine Silvers, Board President of the Coalition to Strengthen the Sheldon/Charter Oak Neighborhood, Inc. (CSS/CON)
Lancelot Gordon, Interim Executive Director of Hartford Housing Authority
Bruce E. Douglas, Ph.D., Capitol Region Education Council

What: The Hartford Neighborhood Mural Arts Project will host a celebration of the installation of “Through Our Eyes,” an 8’x 32’ mural created by 12 teenage residents of the Sheldon/Charter Oak neighborhood under the guidance of Hartford artist Chet Kempczynski.  The mural depicts the neighborhood, highlighting the changing landscape of the area.

This six-week summer employment program was a collaboration among Coalition to Strengthen the Sheldon/Charter Oak Neighborhood, the Capitol Region Education Council and Sheldon Oak Central.  In addition to creating the mural, the students mentored younger students from the neighborhoods for five weeks.  The project was funded in part by a summer employment program from Capital Workforce Partners, with additional funding from the Greater Hartford Arts Council, The Edward C. and Ann T. Roberts Foundation, Junior League of Hartford, George A. and Grace L. Long Foundation and Hartford Housing Authority.

When: Thursday, September 29, 5:30 – 6:30 p.m.

Where: Martin Luther King Housing Development, 79 Van Block Avenue, Hartford.

Why: To celebrate not only the artistic expression by these young residents, but also the new energy of the neighborhoods evidenced by the painting.  In writing about the mural project, the students said, “We are the future of Hartford.  This mural is about our neighborhood.  It is what we see ‘through our eyes.’  It is about pride, unity, community and learning together.”

About the Organizations:
CREC is a non-profit, regional educational service center serving 35 Greater Hartford public school districts.  It was founded in 1966 by local school districts working together to solve common problems.  Today, CREC administers more than 120 programs and services spanning the entire educational spectrum with the same goal in mind.  For more information about CREC and its Community Education programs, visit www.crec.org.

CSS/CON exists as an organization of people who live, work, worship and recreate in the Sheldon/Charter Oak neighborhood.  Our mission is to maintain and strengthen the Sheldon/Charter Oak neighborhood by means of a unified organization formed into a cohesive coalition.  We do this in collaboration with a broad base of public and private organizations.  For more information please call 860-509-3706.

Founded in 1969, the non-profit developer Sheldon Oak Central owns and operates 600 affordable housing units in neighborhoods all over the city of Hartford.  Since 1993, SOC has worked with CSS/CON to revitalize the Sheldon/Charter Oak area, creating or renovating more than 200 family apartments in four neighborhood developments: MLK, Twin Acres, Wyllys/Lisbon and Sheldon Oak Cooperative.  The MLK development, completed in 1998, includes a free-standing community center with community meeting space and facilities where neighborhood organizations offer recreational and educational programs for children and families.

Capital Workforce Partners is one of five workforce investment boards in the state of Connecticut, covering 37 municipalities including Hartford, New Britain and Bristol.  For more information, visit www.capitalworkforce.org.